Song Kang Reveals How He Became Friends With Bts’s V During Military Service

The actor explained the story behind their widely shared military photos, revealing a friendship built through ordinary days away from duty.

Actor Song Kang has shared new details about the friendship he formed with BTS member V during their mandatory military service.

Appearing on the August 25 episode of TEO’s YouTube talk show Salon Drip, Song explained that he and V served within the same army corps, although they had different assignments. V served in the military police’s Special Duty Team, commonly known as the SDT, while Song described himself as a regular soldier.

The two did not become close simply because they were celebrities serving at the same time. According to Song, a mutual acquaintance helped them get in contact. They then deliberately coordinated their weekday outings so they could spend time together away from their respective duties.

“We met, ate together and often went to PC cafés,” Song said.

Their outings also included fellow soldiers from both sides. Song recalled one occasion when members of V’s unit and his own group formed two teams of five for a multiplayer game.

How Military Service Turned Song Kang and BTS’s V Into Gaming Friends / Salon Drip

A Surprisingly Ordinary Friendship

The anecdote offers the missing context behind photos of Song and V that attracted attention while they were enlisted.

The images showed the two stars in military clothing and posing together during personal time, prompting curiosity about how one of Korea’s most prominent actors had become friends with a member of BTS.

Their routine, however, was considerably more ordinary than their public profiles might suggest. They arranged compatible days off, ate meals and visited gaming cafés with their military friends, activities familiar to many young people in South Korea.

That contrast makes the story memorable. Outside the military, V and Song operate in different corners of Korean entertainment and rarely have an obvious reason to appear together. Inside the army, they were two soldiers serving in the same corps who happened to share acquaintances and interests.

The group gaming story also shows that their friendship was not limited to a carefully staged celebrity meeting. Their fellow soldiers participated as well, turning the outing into a larger social gathering rather than a private encounter between two stars.

Two Major Careers Interrupted at Their Peak

V and Song both entered the military while commanding substantial international audiences.

Song had become one of Netflix’s most recognizable Korean actors through series including Love Alarm, Sweet Home, Nevertheless and My Demon. His enlistment temporarily paused a career built around romance, fantasy and action roles.

V entered the military after establishing an independent musical identity through his 2023 solo album Layover, while remaining part of BTS. He later served in the SDT, a specialized military police unit with more physically demanding responsibilities than standard assignments.

Despite their different roles, their overlapping service provided the unusual setting in which the actor and singer could become friends outside the schedules, cameras and promotional expectations of the entertainment industry.

Song completed his service in October 2025. His Salon Drip appearance arrives as he begins promoting his first television drama following his discharge.

How Military Service Turned Song Kang and BTS’s V Into Gaming Friends / Salon Drip

Song Kang Returns With Four Hands

Song will return to television in tvN’s Four Hands, premiering August 29 at 9:10 p.m. KST.

The 12-episode youth drama follows musically gifted students who meet at an arts high school and navigate friendship, love, rivalry and personal growth. Its title refers to a piano performance in which two musicians play the same instrument together.

Song plays Kang Bi-oh, a promising pianist whose carefully ordered life changes after meeting transfer student Choi Jung-yo, portrayed by Lee Jun-young. Jang Gyu-ri plays viola student Hong Jae-in, a childhood friend whose relationship with the two pianists forms another part of the story.

The series marks Song’s first drama following military service, giving his appearance on Salon Drip significance beyond the story about V. It represents his formal return to promotional activities and offers viewers a glimpse at how he spent the period between his earlier projects and his new role.

For fans of both stars, the military anecdote reveals something that polished promotional appearances rarely capture: a friendship that grew through synchronized days off, shared meals and competitive PC café sessions.